Supreme Judicial Court Hears Appeal Over Juvenile’s Conviction for Reposting Violent Meme

Summary

At oral argument, the court considered whether reposting a TikTok meme by a high‑school student sufficed to prove subjective intent to threaten, or whether the evidence required a new trial due to an omitted jury instruction; prosecutors pointed to the meme’s content, deletion, and the juvenile’s comment about a 'dark sense of humor.'

BOSTON — The Supreme Judicial Court on Tuesday heard argument in an impounded appeal by a juvenile convicted after reposting a violent meme on TikTok, with defense counsel saying the evidence was insufficient to prove the student intended a threat and prosecutors saying the post and surrounding facts supported the conviction.

"This case is about a child who merely pressed a button," Dennis Toomey, counsel for the juvenile, told the court, arguing the record contained "no eyewitness" and no evidence that the juvenile "adopted" the meme’s language as his own willful communication. Toomey said the absence of a jury instruction on the element of subjective intent prejudiced the defendant and warranted relief.

Hallie White, an assistant district attorney for Middlesex representing the Commonwealth, responded that "the…

Supreme Judicial Court Hears Appeal Over Juvenile’s Conviction for Reposting Violent Meme

Summary

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